she’s right to be worried. at least 600 residences have staff and patients have been infected — and ltc homes account for about half of the over one thousand recorded deaths in the country, according to canada’s chief public health officer dr. theresa tam .
while elderly patients are particularly vulnerable, their caregivers are also falling ill at alarming rates. this week in quebec revealed that about 70 per cent of the province’s covid-19 deaths have been in ltc homes and more than 1,200 staff have contracted the virus. both premier francois legault and doug ford have asked for the canadian armed forces’ help in assisting ltcs.
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“if [a personal support worker is] working for one family and that family says they no longer need you, they can’t just easily go and work for another family,” says barbara jo caruso, an immigration lawyer at the corporate immigration law firm. “the new family would have to file a labour market impact assessment for them, advertise and go through all the requirements of that program, which takes at least a couple of months if not longer.”
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according to a press release from the migrant rights network, there are at least 1.8 million migrants in canada, with 1.3 million study and work permit holders, and refugee claimants. about half a million people in canada are undocumented. more than 42 per cent of non-permanent residents are low-income, making them extremely vulnerable to the covid-created economic crisis.
further, because of covid-19, personal landing appointments — the process through which immigrants confirm their intentions of staying in canada — have been suspended. as for a solution, caruso looks to france’s decision to extend work and study permits as well as visitor statuses, recommending that priority be given to those who need to vary their work permits, caregivers falling into this category.
“we know they’re mostly racialized women, and the work they’re doing has become very high risk and essential, and it may have not been viewed like that before this crisis,” says diana da silva, a community organizer at the centre. the cac’s pandemic duties involve coordinating with other caregiver groups across canada, getting members to reach out to the federal government, and ultimately make it so that anyone can access financial supports like ei and cerb regardless of status.
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nsokic@postmedia.com | @sokic_